Indian Red wood

Pterocarpus santalinus

Also known as Red Sanders, Red sandalwood

TreeMedicinal

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About Indian Red wood

Pterocarpus santalinus, with the common names red sanders, red saunders, Yerra Chandanam, Chenchandanam, red sandalwood, Rakta Chandana, and rakto chandon, is a species of Pterocarpus endemic to the southern Eastern Ghats mountain range of South India. It is known for its red colour and has been used for furniture, musical instruments, and traditional herbal medicine. Because of the high market value for its timber, the species has been overexploited, and illegal trade remains a problem. It is listed as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List. It should not be confused with the aromatic Santalum sandalwood trees native to southern India.

Description adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Plant Details

Scientific name: Pterocarpus santalinus
Genus: Pterocarpus
Family: FABACEAE
Habit: Tree
Habitat: Deciduous forests, also planted
Native to: India
Distribution: India
Flowering & fruiting: April-June; Fruit till February
Conservation status: Endangered (EN)

Local Names

Hindi: लाल चंदन Lal chandan, रक्तचंदन Raktachandan, Lal Chandan
Nepali: रक्तचन्दन
Tamil: Semmaram, Sivappuchandanam, செஞ்சந்தனம்
Telugu: Yerrachandanam, ఎర్రచందనం, ఎర్ర చందనం
Kannada: Kempujandha, Raktashandana, ರಕ್ತಚಂದನ
Malayalam: Chenchandanam, രക്തചന്ദനമ് Rakthachandanam, Rakthachandanam
Marathi: Ratanjan, रक्तचंदन

Illustration representing the FABACEAE family

Botanical family

Fabaceae

Legume/Bean family

Indian Red wood belongs to the Fabaceae family.

The illustration represents the family — not necessarily this exact species.

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